Hello!  It's me, Garrett Perkins, aka the Goon.  Hope this finds y'all well!

I no longer live in New York.  I now live in New Hampshire (or "New Hamster", as I like to call it).  There were several murders just up the way from where we lived in NYC, and my parents couldn't take it anymore, so we moved.  We moved just after I got out of school.

I still have my brothers (Icarus, Marcus, and Joshiah, who are 13, 12, 9, and 6), and my sister, Dyamond, who is six.  (We adopted her last year; she came from Missouri.)  I also still have my mom and pop.  We are a regular family now.  :)

I am now nearing the age of eighteen.  I graduate from high school in June; frankly, I cannot WAIT!!  School has been nothing but a big waste of my time!  When I graduate, I plan on getting into college; been looking at some brochures from some schools, but haven't really made a conscious decision just yet.

Also have been looking for work, but nothing's really going down.  Seems the only places that are hiring are fast-food places or convenience stores, or department stores, and I really don't want to go that route.  If I want to work, I want to go into auto mechanics, but nobody's really hiring unless "you have the experience".  It's really a pain.  I have been looking for work nearly every day after I get out of school; so far, nothing.  

Or maybe it's because I'm so tall (over seven foot in my bare feet!) and weigh over 450 pounds.  I look rather intimidating (hence my nickname, which is "Goon").  Guess the people at the auto garages don't think I can do the work because I would have difficulty in getting underneath a vehicle.  Maybe so, but I'm willing to work and make some dough.

Or maybe if I can't find work, I can go into the military.  Then I'd be guaranteed a job!  I'd like to go into the Marines or maybe the Air Force.  Still have time to make up my mind before school lets out in June and before I graduate.  Am not really in no hurry ...

Still keep in close contact with my bud, Shawn Perkins, who lives in Alabama.  He is doing great!  He is getting ready to join the Marines after school lets out; he wants to make a difference.  He is very involved with church; he'd like to become a preacher when he gets out of the service.  He writes to me nearly every week (but I am not so hot in answering his letters; busy with schoolwork and taking care of my family).

Shawn came up for Christmas; it was great having him here.  We really had a great time, catching up on old times and fooling around like teenage boys do.  It was wonderful, but Christmas break went by too fast!  I was not ready to return back to school!!  LOL

My littlest brother, Joshiah, was recently in the hospital: he had a bad respiratory flu; we thought for a minute we were going to end up burying him, but then he rallied, and he got better.  He's still recovering, but every day he gets stronger.  He's on oxygen for now.  (Joshiah has cerebralspinabellar ataxia, which is a rare disease that causes increasing disability.  Joshiah is in a wheelchair and is fed by a tube.  It's really a heartbreaking condition.)

My other brother, Icarus, who has autism, can be a pain.  He's always going off in his own little world, and you never know when he is going to explode or go into his stimming moments again.  It's really embarrassing when people stare at him or make comments (they do the same thing with Joshie).  I love my brothers, don't get me wrong, but I do hate taking them anywhere because of the stares or comments from others!

I'm just glad I have Eden, my oldest little brother; he and I are tight; we get along super-great!  I also have Dyamond, and she's good too, but she's a little girl who is into princesses and stuff, and that's just a bit too much for me to take.  LOL  Marcus, my second oldest brother, is good too, but he's a geek: he's into computers and stuff.  He wants to become a nuclear physicist when he gets out of college.  The kid has the brains of Einstein: he is super, super intelligent.  His IQ score is nearly off the charts, it's so high.  It's amazing!!

Well, that's what's new with me.  I will write in here again.  Sorry it's been so long; now you know why I haven't written.  I will try to write more regularly, so I won't leave y'all in the dark.  Until later, this is the Goonster saying so long! God bless and talk to you again!

~Goon.  :)